Washington, D.C. - The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) announces that Commissioner Enrique Gil Botero presented his resignation to the IACHR on March 9, 2017. That same day, the President of the IACHR, Commissioner James Cavallaro, notified the Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), Luis Almagro, as established in the rules and regulations, in order to fill the vacancy.

Article 38 of the American Convention on Human Rights states: “Vacancies that may occur on the Commission for reasons other than the normal expiration of a term shall be filled by the Permanent Council of the Organization in accordance with the provisions of the Statute of the Commission.”

For its part, Article 11 of the Statute of the Inter-American Commission establishes the following:

When a vacancy occurs for reasons other than the normal completion of a member's term of office, the Chairman of the Commission shall immediately notify the Secretary General of the Organization, who shall in turn inform the member states of the Organization.

In order to fill vacancies, each government may propose a candidate within a period of 30 days from the date of receipt of the Secretary General's communication that a vacancy has occurred.

The Secretary General shall prepare an alphabetical list of the candidates and shall transmit it to the Permanent Council of the Organization, which shall fill the vacancy.

On March 15, 2017, the IACHR will begin its 161st session, the first session of the year. Under the IACHR Rules of Procedure, the Commission elects the members of its board of officers (president and two vice-presidents) on the first day of the first session of the calendar year. At that time, the IACHR will deliberate and will decide on who will coordinate the Country Rapporteurships and Thematic Rapporteurships that were the responsibility of Commissioner Gil Botero. He was in charge of the Rapporteurship on the Rights of Migrants and the Rapporteurships for Barbados, Chile, Guatemala, and Mexico.

The IACHR thanks Enrique Gil Botero for his dedication during his time as Commissioner and wishes him success in his new position as Colombia’s Minister of Justice.

A principal, autonomous body of the OAS, the IACHR derives its mandate from
the OAS Charter and the American Convention on Human Rights. The
Inter-American Commission has a mandate to promote respect for human rights
in the region and acts as a consultative body to the OAS in this area. The
Commission is composed of seven independent members who are elected in an
individual capacity by the OAS General Assembly and who do not represent
their countries of origin or residence.